Promotional products such as gift pens with company logo, diaries, calculators, crystal, calendars, and notepads are used to market and promote business products and services. Promotional material is often forwarded through the mail system such as the U.S. Post Office. Promotional material sent through the mail is often carried in dedicated envelopes such as printed envelopes. The step of inserting promotional material into dedicated envelopes adds cost. Thus, there is a need for promotional material that can be handled by, for example, the U.S. Post Office without requiring special packaging or use of envelopes.
Promotional material often lacks utility and hence reinforces the “junk mail” stereotype wherein the addressee liberally throws promotional material into a trash can almost upon receipt. Thus, there is a need for a promotional material that has distinct and separate utility beyond a boring promotional message and therefore less likely to be thrown upon receipt directly into a trash can.
In addition, novelty items are of intrinsic interest beyond their exploitation as promotional material to support a marketing effort. A novelty item mailed through, for example, the U.S. Post Office can have an agreeable effect upon receipt by the addressee. Thus, there is a need for novelty items that can be mailed directly without requiring packaging such as an envelope.
Novelty items such as fans adapted for mailing are known. Such mailable fans often require complicated folding along the fold-lines to enable the fan ready for use. However, fold-lines typically weaken the fan blade. To offset this problem a handle is sometimes pivoted to cross over fold lines. Thus, there is a latent need to overcome the problem of fold-lines.
A review of the prior art known to the Applicants follows.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,231,104, issued Jun. 26, 1917 to F. H. Waggoner, describes a fan that can be folded to make a flat, thin, parcel, so that it may be sent through the mail as a mailing card. In one embodiment, the '104 fan comprises a fan section A, and a handle D, wherein section A is folded to form two sections B and C. The handle is pivotally attached to the fan section C and in normal use lies across the fold separating sections B and C to enable the '104 device to be used as a fan. To mail the '104 device, fan section A is folded and the handle is positioned to lie between sections B and C. The presence of a fold between sections B and C presents a line of weakness such that when the '104 device is unfolded and used as a fan, section A has a tendency to buckle along the fold-line separating sections B and C. Thus, there is a need for an improved fan system that does not use a fold line.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,261,482, issued Apr. 2, 1918 to Brewington, describes a convertible post-card and fan comprising a sheet foldable on a central line to form front and rear folds, and a handle bar pivoted to each fold near the fold line; the bars are adapted to form a fan handle. The fold-line weakens the '482 device.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,052,180, issued Aug. 25, 1936 to Klie, describes a fan having a combined handle and blade formed from a single piece of thin cardboard. The handle portion is described as providing a natural grip and serves to distribute bending strain on the blade. The '180 device is not adapted to be sent through the mail.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,173,800, issued Feb. 29, 1916, to Hayes, describes a fan comprising a foldable blade and a set of intermediate bars pivotally connected to each other. While the '800 device is adapted to be sent through the mail, the intermediate bars add complexity to the device.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,346,596, issued Apr. 11, 1944 to Martin, describes an article comprising a sheet of paper provided with fold-lines along which it is foldable from an extended flat form to the size of a post card that can be refolded into a fan having a handle.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,352,630, issued Oct. 5, 1982 to Wallo, describes a hand fan assembly that comprises a fan body having an elongate handle socket extending inwardly from one edge of the fan body, and an elongate handle having a hand-grip portion and an extension stem projecting from the grip portion and adapted to be received in a socket. The fan body of the '630 device is adapted to be formed by folding panels together along a score line which may have a cut-out to receive the handle stem into the socket. In a kit package the fan body and the handle are enclosed in an envelope with the handle extending across a major dimension of the body.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,126,797, issued Feb. 2, 1915 to Licheter, describes a fan comprising a cardboard blade adapted to receive inscriptions, and a cardboard handle embracing the lower side of the blade. The handle is described as conforming in profile to the palm of a hand and having an opening suited to receive a thumb. The '797 patent is not suitable for mailing since it lacks printed information necessary to allow a person to successfully mail the '797 fan.
U.S. Pat. No. 874,957, issued Dec. 31, 1907 to Godley, describes a jewelry clasp having outer and inner clasp members. The outer clasp member has a cylindrical bore extending from one end and with slots extending through the walls of the outer clasp member at a point above the end of the bore. The forward and rear walls of the slots are inclined toward the forward, or open, end of the bore. The inner clasp member is adapted to be rotatably and slidably supported within the cylindrical bore, and heads projecting from the inner clasp member, the heads having independent inclined faces for engagement, respectively, with the forward and rearward inclined walls of the slots.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,150,464, issued Apr. 24, 1979 to Tracy, describes a buckle that includes separable cooperating receptacle and clasp members. The receptacle member includes a pair of locking slots formed in opposing sides thereof. The clasp member includes a pair of resilient arms having locking tabs thereon for releasably engaging the locking slots of the receptacle member. The receptacle member also includes a pair of grooves for slidably engaging cooperating raised ridges formed on a central arm of the clasp member for guiding said clasp member during insertion into and removal from the receptacle member. The central arm of the clasp member also includes a pair of laterally extending edges for defining a limit to the inward bending of the resilient arms. The receptacle also includes a belt end termination member including a slide member for adjusting the length of a belt looped around said slide member. The clasp member also includes a base member joining the three arms thereof and including a through slot for terminating a belt end or the like.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,825,515, issued May 2, 1989 to Wolterstorff, Jr., describes a safety buckle that is comprised of two, releasable, interlocking portions. One portion has outward flexing lateral arms with tabs connected to their leading ends. Positioned between the lateral arms is a central safety arm that flexes vertically and has a latching hook connected to its leading end. The arms flex slightly to facilitate insertion into the receiving portion. When fully inserted, the tabs of the lateral arm protrude into corresponding openings located on opposite sides of the receiving portion whereas the hook of the safety arm locks into a corresponding slot located on the back of the receiving portion.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,557,276, issued Oct. 13, 1925 to Stebbings, describes a fan that is designed to rest against the underside of the crown of a hat. The '276 hat fan comprises a fan element, a handle member slidably mounted on the fan for movement in a plane parallel with the plane of the fan. A yielding device is disposed between the fan and the handle to move the handle to an extended position.
None of the above patents and publications, taken either singularly or in combination, is seen to describe the instant invention as claimed.